Two teenagers travelling to Middle East intercepted at Sydney airport

Two teenage brothers have been stopped at Sydney airport under suspicion of travelling to the Middle East to join extremist groups, the immigration minister, Peter Dutton, said. The 16 and 17-year old had return tickets to an undisclosed location in the Middle East, and were travelling without the knowledge of their parents. The family lives in south-western Sydney, but no other details have been released.

These were two misguided young Australians, Australians born and bred, went to school here, grew up here, imbibed our values, and yet, it seems, they had succumbed to the lure of the death cult and they were on the verge of doing something terrible and dangerous.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott

Around 90 Australians have travelled overseas to fight with extremist groups, including Islamic State. Abbott confirmed that security agencies are monitoring 400 Australians still in the country.

These two young men, aged 16 and 17, are kids, not killers, and they shouldn’t be allowed to go to a foreign land to fight and to come back to our shores eventually more radicalised.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton

Asia-Pacific Sydney teens